Powell reports Q2 EPS $2.75, consensus $1.77

Reports Q2 revenue $255.1M, consensus $201.45M. Reports Backlog as of March 31 remained at $1.3B; Cash and short-term investments as of March 31 , totaled $365M…Brett A. Cope, Powell’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Powell delivered solid second quarter results supported by continued growth within our Industrial end markets as well as strong performances from both our Electric Utility and Commercial and Other Industrial markets. Revenue in the quarter was 49% higher than the second quarter of Fiscal 2023, while excellent project execution and volume leverage drove a 510 basis point improvement in gross margin to 24.6%. New orders of $235 million in the quarter were higher by 19% sequentially and were well-balanced across the markets we serve, keeping our backlog essentially unchanged at $1.3 billion. Overall, we are encouraged by both our financial performance in the first half of the year as well as the activity levels within each of the markets we serve.”Cope added, “Project activity across the markets we serve remains active. We anticipate that projects within the LNG market will continue to progress, however, based upon the recent pause on LNG export permitting by the Department of Energy, the timing of these future projects may be impacted. We are experiencing continued growth of our Commercial and Other Industrial sector, as well as the Electric Utility sector, while also seeing strong activity related to energy transition projects. We remain encouraged by the growth dynamics across the markets in which we compete and are well positioned to support these newer applications with Powell’s products and expertise.”